Anna Ch. 01

My new story is a different genre from the last one, but I hope that those of you who read my submissions before enjoy it. It's a story of many parts, but I promise to post more promptly than before:)

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Anna sank into the plush seat across from Madame Ko, sitting gingerly upright, worried that she might do something wrong. She wasn't comfortable in the presence of the Madame. Cristabel had assured her that this was a good idea-in fact, it was the only idea, and the only real option-but she hadn't mentioned just how imposing the proprietress of the business was. Madame Ko was a tall woman, with golden skin and shining black hair drawn up into an elaborate series of braids. She wore a skintight high-collared silk dress, ice blue, with gold lame trimming the edges of the collar and the short sleeves. Her makeup was dark, dramatic and flawless. She didn't smile as Anna seated herself. Anna controlled an impulse to squirm and waited for the Madame to speak, blushing slightly under the scrutiny of those piercing eyes.

"Cristabel says she found you wandering the Promenade, begging." Madame Ko's voice was smooth and cool, with a slightly oriental accent. "How long have you been on Ceyla?" Ceyla was a space station in the center of the civilized universe, an elegant and extremely wealthy habitat bubble on top of a large asteroid that had been grabbed out of its belt and put in an orbit around the nearby sun. Ceyla was small, wealthy and therefore highly selective. Ceyla City, the only habitable space there, was occupied by some of the richest men and women in the universe, and it was a haven for guilty pleasures of all types.

"A little over a week," Anna replied.

"How did you come to be here?"

"My home colony, Koreo 12, was attacked a month ago." Anna tried to say it quickly, to get it all out before she choked with sorrow. "My family was killed and I was taken prisoner. I was going to be sold into slavery. The ship I was on had some mechanical problem, what I never discovered, and they had to land here for repairs." She shuddered with the memory of the captain of the pirate vessel screaming in rage at the fees required to even dock on the asteroid. "The security got lax when the men began drinking. I managed to slip out of my bonds and escape. They looked for me for a little while, but they couldn't ask the lawmen here for help, because they didn't have any proper papers for me and they didn't want their operation to be found out. They left five days ago." She rubbed her damp palms on her thighs. "I tried talking to the lawmen, but they told me no person can stay on Ceyla without employment or a great deal of money. They picked me up twice for begging, and they told me the next time I would go out the airlock." Tears filled Anna's eyes. "But I had no other option! It was beg or starve. No one would hire me, and I had nothing to sell to get me home. Not that I have any place to go to now."

Madame Ko appeared unmoved by her tears. "The lawmen were quite right. Ceyla is one of the most sought-after pleasure centers in this part of the galaxy, and there are more applicants for all of the positions here than we could possibly accept. Cristabel found you yesterday, correct?"

"Yes."

"And she said she could get you a position."

"Yes...as long as I was a virgin." Anna looked down. "I am."

"And you're of legal age?"

"Yes. I turned twenty a standard month ago. But I've never...I mean, I haven't got any experience with men! My colony was very small, it was only my family and three others-"

"Lack of experience is not an issue." Madame Ko waved one manicured hand as if brushing aside the complaint. "In fact, the less experience, the better. A girl who is a

virgin can get an amazing price her first time out, and if she performs well, men and women will line up to experience her. All of my girls and boys are past their first time, and I asked them to start looking for virgins several weeks ago." She examined Anna's face. "You're pretty enough, with those big brown eyes of yours. I'm sure you clean up fairly well."

"But I'm not sure if this is something I want!" Anna protested. "Isn't there some other way-"

"There's the airlock." Madame Ko shrugged. "They were exaggerating, of course, but you could be sent to a prison planet if they catch you in a third offense. If you decide to work for me, I can offer you three things. First, there is money. My girls and boys, my Stars, are the only human pleasure companions on Ceyla. All the business comes to us, and the waiting list is ten men long for the least popular of my people. They pay top credit to be obeyed, to be pampered, to be treated like royalty and entertained however they please. You receive fifty percent of the fee, most of which is put directly into a safe account. The rest of it goes to keeping the establishment, although I do provide you with an allowance for clothes and such other things you might need." She tapped one long nail on the glass table between them and glanced down for a moment.

"Second, there is the training. I wouldn't start you off completely green. You'll be taught to dance, to sing, perhaps to play an instrument. You'll learn how to pleasure a man or a woman in a way that drives them mad. If you have any special skills, they can be incorporated into your particular package, your persona. That is listed for potential customers to peruse, to help them decide what they want. Even if you decide to leave my employ eventually, you'll have skills to take with you." She smiled thinly. "In this universe of circuitry and machines, never underestimate the value of a pleasing, non-android companion.

"Third, there is safety. I do not tolerate the abuse of my Stars. If a client wants to play with bondage and dominance and so forth, that's fine for the right person, but if things ever go beyond the comfort of my Star, the client can anticipate immediate retribution."

"What sort of retribution?" Anna asked, interested despite herself.

"Whatever sort I deem necessary. Generally monetary, and it all goes to the Star, but on occasion there have been...special cases. Those I take care of myself. Are you still interested?"

"I...yes, I am," Anna replied.

"Good. Then let me tell you the rules." Madame Ko folded her hands in a businesslike manner. "If you work for me, then you work only for me, and you work. I arrange your rendezvous, and whatever your personal feelings, you do your best with every customer you get. No private contracts, no preferential treatment unless they pay for it. If you decide you want to get married at some point, I won't stop you, but realize that it will mean either leaving my employ or keeping your partner happy while you're working with others. I do not tolerate infighting, so whether or not your favorite client is going with another girl or boy some particular evening, I don't want to hear one iota, one atom of discontent. That's grounds for immediate dismissal. As for recreational sex, you can have it with other Stars after we auction away your virginity, but only so long as it doesn't conflict with your duties. I do not tolerate drug use. Period." The chill factor of her voice increased. "If a client wants to smoke angel dust with you some starry romantic evening, too damn bad. I need your brain at least as intact as your body. If a client forces drugs on you, that client will feel the repercussions, I guarantee it. Finally, and most importantly, if you have a problem, come to me. I don't care what it is, but before bringing it to anyone else, you bring it to me. I'll make sure you're healthy, well-fed, that you have leisure time and all the luxuries that help you maintain yourself. If something is bothering you, tell me. If you have a problem with a client that seems insurmountable, tell me. We are known for our discretion, and if you hear something that may be compromising to your client, or potentially illegal, or concerns you in any other way, you tell me before you tell anyone else, and I will decide what to do. Do you understand and agree to these terms?"

Anna only thought for a moment. It did seem like a good deal, and despite the knowledge that she would be selling her body, it was far better than starving or being deported to a prison planet. Maybe she wouldn't have to stay long. She could get the money together to leave Ceyla, find out if any of the other colonists were still alive, maybe find a way to move on and begin her own life... "I accept the terms."

"Good." Madame Ko tapped the top of her desk again. A document appeared embedded in the surface of the glass. Madame Ko swiveled it around so that it faced Anna. "Sign at the bottom." She caught Anna's confused glance. "Just make the marks with your index finger." She signed her name, Anna Elsiane Ferragen.

"Good." Madame Ko tapped the glass once more and the document disappeared. "That's the last time you'll use your real name while in my employ. All of my Stars get different, more exotic names. For you..." She stared at Anna for a moment. "You have a very innocent, fresh look, or at least you will once you've had a bath. I don't normally use middle names for Stars, but yours, Elsiane, it has a young sound, and clients could shorten it in lots of little ways. They do like to play. You will be Elsiane from now on. Is that acceptable?"

"Yes."

"Good. Cristabel is waiting outside the office for you. She'll take you to your new chambers and make sure you get a bath, and then she'll bring you to Harriman in the Wardrobe. He'll help you to begin designing your persona. We'll announce you in...a week, I think. My Stars are invited to every major social event, and one of the asteroid-mining magnates will be holding a ball then. It will be the perfect time to announce the auction." She handed a blue credit slip across the desk to Anna. "This is full. It will help you get what you need to make a good impression. Don't waste it, though. You won't get any more money until you've earned some yourself."

"Yes, Madame."

"You may leave."

Slightly dazed at the whirlwind interview she had just received, Anna stood up and walked over to the pearlescent doors. They slid silently apart and she exited, only to be grabbed by Cristabel.

"Well?" The girl demanded, smiling hugely. Cristabel was a petite woman with tight blond curls, a curvaceous figure and tiny waist and a vast, ever-present smile. She had bright blue eyes and light skin, and her nails were painted bright red. "Are you hired?"

"Yes." Anna relaxed a little as the doors slid shut behind her. "I didn't realize Madame Ko would be such an imposing woman."

"Oh, we never tell anyone about her before they meet her," Cristabel confided with a smile. "Otherwise they'd never have the nerve. What's your new name?"

"Um...Elsiane."

"Nice name." The girl nodded approvingly as she took Anna's arm and began to walk her down the corridor. There was carpet underfoot, topaz-gold and silky smooth. "You can call me Cris, by the way, everyone does. Can I call you Elsie?"

"If you really want to."

"Fab." They stopped outside a tall door. "This is the hall that leads to our rooms. Girls over here, boys across the way. It's a little old-fashioned, especially since some of us have gone the whole 'alien-lover' route and you can barely tell what they are anymore, but that's Madame for you." She opened the door and escorted Anna in. "You're room will be down at the end, right next to mine. It used to be Delphine's room, but she got married over a month ago and moved out. Shame, too, she was always up for a late-night tousle." They stopped in front of a pale pink door. "Got your credit slip?"

"Yes."

"It's more than just money inside the Stars complex, it's your identification. When you hold it and press it to your door, it'll open. Nobody else can get in that way. Only Madame can get into everyone's room. Go on, press it."

Anna withdrew the credit slip and pressed it to the door. It slid back, revealing a dark room that immediately brightened when she stepped inside. The room itself was huge, far bigger than what she had lived in on Koreo 12. There was a bed that would fit five of her shoulder-to-shoulder, and a dressing table with a mirror that showed your reflection when you were right in front of it, but displayed pictures of some sandy pink beach when you weren't. The sound of the waves was very realistic.

"That's a picture Delphine left up," Cris chatted. "She was from a water world, she said she had trouble sleeping if she didn't hear the waves. You can change it if you want, I can show you how. This panel over here-press it and the wardrobe springs out of the wall. You can change the color of the walls too if you want, Delphine loved pink but that doesn't do it for everyone. Colors are this panel over here." She pointed at one right beside the mirror. "Just trace the color wheel. Hue adjustments, brightness, you can make it anything you want."

"Wow." Anna sat down on the bed. Unsurprisingly, it was a water bed. She had never slept on anything other than a hard, slender pallet before, and was surprised at how unstable she felt.

"Oh yeah, you can change that too," Cris added, noticing her discomfort. "Delphine went all the way. She and her hubby are back on her water world now, and more power to them. The buttons on the side adjust firmness, the dials below are texture. I love these multi-form materials, don't you?" Cris grabbed Anna's arm and helped her to her feet. "But you haven't even seen the best part yet! You and I share a bathroom, it's through this door here." She opened the other door and pulled Anna into the room. Not quite as big as the bedroom, it was still very large, and dominated by a high-rimmed, circular tub at least six feet across. There were two sinks on the far wall, and two mirrors. One was covered with bottles, powders, curlers and some things Anna couldn't even identify. The other was bare and clean. And pink. Delphine's, obviously.

Cris started the water flowing. It seemed to come out of the faucet as globules, bouncing off the base of the tub but stopping just below the rim. "I like low-gravity baths." Cris confided as she poured some sweet-smelling green salts out of a bottle and into the bathtub. "They're more fun." Reaching to the wall, she dimmed the lights a little and then started taking off her clothes. "C'mon, Elsie."

"Do we have to bathe together?" Anna asked hesitantly.

"Well, you need it, and I'm in the mood." Cris shrugged as she pulled her strapless shirt over her head. Her large, smooth breasts fell free of the fabric and bounced a little as she tossed the shirt aside. They were large for her size but very perky, and her nipples stood firmly at attention despite the heat of the room. Steam rose towards the ceiling and fogged the mirrors. Cris wiggled her hips out of the long, feathery yellow skirt she was wearing, then tossed it aside as well, leaving her in just a skimpy thong. Her tiny waist was accentuated by flaring round hips, which flowed down into slender legs and tiny feet. When she turned around, Anna noticed a number of small metal nubs sticking out of various places along her spine, right up to the base of her skull. Cris followed her stare.

"Those are my biomechanical enhancements," Cris giggled. "Everybody's got something these days, right? Touch them the right way and they tap directly into my neural network. Different nubs give me different sensations...clients have a real fun time finding out which does which. Aren't you going to undress?"

"Yes." Your life is the pleasure business for now, Anna. You'd better get used to being naked with other people. Hastily she pulled off the stained one-piece coverall that the slavers had made her wear. She had no underwear on, and got into the bath as quickly as she could. The water was warm but not hot, and she began to relax a little bit. It smelled wonderful. Anna closed her eyes and laid her head back along the rim. Little globs of water bounced off her flesh, some sticking to her skin, others moving on. She heard Cris turn the water off, and then enter the bath herself. Anna kept her eyes closed, just savoring the feel of clean water against her grimy skin, until two small hands pushed on the top of her head and forced it under the surface for a moment. Anna came up spluttering and mad. She cleared the hair out of her face and got ready to yell, but her voice caught in her throat. Cris was kneeling right in front of her, in all her naked glory. The thong was gone. She had golden hair covering her sex, and her breasts were right in front of Anna's face. Cris was pouring some liquid into her hair.

"Let's get some of those tangles out." The liquid was shampoo. Cris started massaging it into Anna's head. "I need a better angle," she complained, then hoisted herself onto Anna's lap. Anna kept her legs firmly clamped together, but the feel of Cris' smooth, soft posterior on her thighs was extremely distracting. And then there was her sex, so close to Anna's, and her breasts right in front of her face... She didn't know where to put her hands.

Cris seemed to be enjoying herself. She scratched her bright nails against Anna's scalp, working in the shampoo and conditioner and humming some simple tune. "You have great hair, Elsie. Harriman will love working with you, with this gorgeous auburn mess. My hair was so bad when I came that he said only the shortest of short cuts would do for it, and I haven't gone back since." She looked slyly at Anna. "You could put your arms around my waist, if it gets to you."

"Um..."

"It's okay then." Cris leaned in before Anna could react and kissed her full on the mouth. "Take your time." Her grin was wicked. "You can do my hair, you need to let the conditioner set for awhile." She climbed down and knelt in front of Anna, facing away and rubbing liquid soap up and down her sides. Anna fumbled for the shampoo, finally grasping it and pouring some onto her hands. She rubbed it in to Cris's curls, working fast and trying to ignore the ache between her legs. Cristobel sensed her discomfort and relented. They rinsed together, then got out of the tub. The globs of water that had clung to them in the low-g bath fell in a shower to the floor, and were instantly funneled away. A notch set in the side of the wall turned out to be a dryer. They stood in front of it for ten seconds apiece and the water was removed. Anna's hair was a little frizzy, but she patted it down.

"I need to get into my costume," Cris announced. "I'm practicing my new routine on the stage tonight, and you can't meet Harriman in those nasty coveralls. Come with me." She went through the door that led to her own room. Anna followed, and was momentarily blinded by the glare. The place was awash in sequins. They glittered from pieces of clothing strung over furniture, and Cris had somehow adjusted the walls to be reflective, enhancing the sparkle.

"I love sequins!" Cris enthused.

"I can tell," Anna replied. She felt very out of place in this room. Her parents had been miners, and she had grown up with a minimum of luxury. The sequins were too much.

"You can borrow something of mine to wear to the Wardrobe," Cris said as she pulled on a thong and a tiny bra, followed by a pair of chaps slit up the sides of the leg. They all sparkled, of course, and in bright red. They were followed by a pair of red stiletto boots that came up to her calf.

"Do you have anything without sequins?" Anna asked without much hope. She was surprised when Cris bounded over to her closet and pulled out a long dress, more of a robe, which tied in front. It was light blue and sleeveless.

"That'll be perfect for you, Elsie." She smiled. "It was a gift from a client but, hello, my legs are not that long. You're tall, though, and with that hair..." She smooched the air, then grabbed a broad-brimmed red hat and a rope. "Need some help?"